The Cleveland Cavaliers couldn’t get a jump shot, layup, or free throw to drop in the early part of their game against the Indiana Pacers Sunday evening as they went down by as many as 20 points. But they started playing better defense in the second and third quarters, and then they put on a show in the fourth quarter, as they rattled off a 19-0 run and ran away from the Pacers 98-85 in another classic game for the most exciting team in the NBA.
I was chatting with a friend about how dull and unengaged the players looked in a nationally televised game this past weekend between the players from the Los Angeles Lakers and New York Knicks. The objection by my friend suggested that the players in the NBA don’t play defense. That may be true with some teams, but not the Cavs.
I said to my friend they should start watching the Cavs play because they play together every night as a basketball team should. It’s that difference that is why the Cavaliers are closing in on leading the Eastern Conference standings. They stand at 33-21 on the season.
The Cavs weren’t however playing very well to start this game. They were getting good looks at the basket but were just missing. The Pacers opened up a lead at 23-5 in that first quarter. Early in the second quarter, the Cavaliers went down 34-14 and that’s when the Wine and Gold started chipping away at the lead and playing better defense. They went on a 17-2 run in that quarter and closed to within five points at 36-31. The Pacers regrouped a bit and were up 47-36 at halftime.
When the second half began Cleveland again closed the gap to 47-42 and the two teams played pretty even. It was 68-61 going into the fourth quarter and that’s when the Cavaliers began the fireworks show, probably one of the most dominating performances by the Cavs defense and offense on the season, as they ran out on a 19-0 spurt that took them to the lead at 80-68 in the blink of an eye. To be exact it took just over three minutes to completely alter the outcome of the game.
There were numerous great moments and players having tremendous games to turn the tide on what looked at first like a loss on the night. Let’s take a look at a few of those outstanding performances.
Stud No. 1: Jarrett Allen
Jarrett Allen finished with his regular double-double on the evening, scoring 15 points and pulling down 17 rebounds. But it’s what he did in the first half of this game that saved this team from a certain loss.
He put maximum effort into grabbing boards, drawing fouls on contact, and diving after loose balls sailing out of bounds that kept the team within striking distance. He played outstanding defense and helped the team close that 20-point Pacers lead down to single digits.
The Cavs big man was a definite snub from the upcoming NBA All-Star Game scheduled to take place here in Cleveland in roughly two weeks. After playing out of his mind in the Cavaliers’ win down in Charlotte at the Hornets on Friday, he followed that up with 12 points and 10 boards in the first half of this game.
He’s certainly reminding the NBA that they messed up in not putting him on the All-Star team this season.
Stud No. 2: Cedi Osman
I’m a big supporter of the Cavs forward Dean Wade, who got the start for the Wine and Gold in this one. Wade played a solid game on Sunday night in limited minutes. I was suggesting to a few of my fellow KJG contributors that I didn’t like the substitution rotation of Wade for Cedi Osman tonight. I say that because Wade is the better defender and if Osman isn’t shooting the ball well, then leave Wade on the floor to help with defense.
And for most of the game, Osman was lousy, especially with his shooting the basketball. He started out going 0-7 from the floor.
However, the lightbulb went off in Osman’s head at the start of the fourth quarter and he was electric, going 8-of-9 the rest of the game and knocking down 22 points.
Osman is one of the streakiest shooters in the league and that was certainly apparent in this game. Let’s hope he can keep the shooting touch going into the next game.
Stud No. 3: Kevin Love
Can the league make an exception for Kevin Love this season and make him an All-Star just because? All joking aside, Love has created a new identity this year as the sixth man for the team and more times than not, when he enters the game, the team plays even better. It may not always start off that way, though. In this game, the first half was still a mess with him on the floor and he kept missing open shots as well.
But he kept putting shots up and he got into more of a rhythm shooting the ball and eventually, he was knocking down long distance threes from everywhere. He finished his evening scoring 19 points, to go along with having seven rebounds and five assists. When he was out on the floor the Cavs were a plus-20.
He and Cedi Osman put on an absolute show for the happy fans at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in the fourth quarter. They combined to score the first 25 points of that quarter. It was the Love and Osman Show and when that show is in town, drop what you’re doing and tune in.
On two back-to-back plays that show was in full gear.
On the first play Love, when the Cavs were on their 19-0 run, threw a length of the floor pass to a sprinting Osman for an easy two points. On the very next offensive possession, which was started with a defensive steal by Love, Love then got the ball back along the three-point line on the sideline and as the Pacers went to defend him taking a shot, Love quickly threw a beautiful behind-the-back pass to Osman who was parked along the baseline for an easier three-point shot that he nailed. That extended the lead to 80-68 and forced the winded Pacers to take a desperate timeout.
Love was everywhere in that fourth quarter, even taking charges on defense and knocking down more three-pointers. The Cavs finished the quarter going 8-of-11 from the three-point arc.
This was another great effort by the whole team. And it’s why the Cavaliers will continue to be the talk of the NBA, and this team is not only eying a playoff appearance, but a run at the championship. Stay tuned!